Reviews: The Queen's Sister (5)

She had a cloth business, a quiet estate, and absolutely no interest in court life. Then her family had other ideas. Elizabeth Seymour, sister of Jane Seymour, is the focus of Carol McGrath's latest novel.

My favourite section explored Elizabeth's life as a young widow away from the Tudor court, quietly focused on improving her estate and establishing a cloth business, much to the dismay of the wider Seymour family, who had rather grander plans once her sister was catapulted into the most exalted position in the land. Fate, of course, has other ideas, and once betrothed to Gregory Cromwell, Thomas Cromwell's son, Elizabeth is pulled straight back into court life as a support to Anne of Cleves.

Much of the novel explores the religious upheaval between the reigns of Henry VIII and Elizabeth I, and how it rippled through the great aristocratic families of the period. This was genuinely fascinating; I only had a vague sense that several families fled to Protestant Europe during Mary's reign, so experiencing this through Elizabeth's eyes brought it vividly to life.

The novel also views this turbulent period through Elizabeth's interactions with Hans Holbein, tracing his own rise and fall within the Tudor court. His Portrait of an Unknown Lady is now thought to depict Elizabeth herself, a lovely, knowing detail that ties the fiction neatly back to the history.

Everyone knows of Jane Seymour (Henry VIII’s third wife) but there is not much known about her sister Elizabeth - this book tells her story.

Widowed at 19, she is forced to move into the north of England and is pregnant with her dead husband’s child; she is heartbroken. Letters from her family reveal that the King has become interested in her sister,
despite still being married to Anne Boleyn.

The Queen’s Sister by Carol McGrath covers the well-known events of the Tudor Era, from a new point of view. Learning what Elizabeth went through really makes you sympathise with the character, especially with all she went through at such a young age.

I found this incredibly interesting, I originally didn’t know much about Elizabeth, and this really brought her to life. You could tell the author mainly writes non-fiction because of the language, as this read similarly to one. Whilst this provided a lot of valuable information, at times it felt the MC lacked emotion, and the setting was often not described. As a result, this made the MC quite distant and you couldn’t really picture what was happening easily.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed reading this. If you enjoy non-fiction history books or historical fiction I think you will love this.

The Queens Sister by Carol McGrath

At nineteen, Elizabeth Seymour is already a mother, has been recently widowed, and seen her Queen, Anne Boleyn, lose her life. Against the wishes of her father, she heads North, away from Wulf Hall and the court in London to Yorkshire, determined to establish a new beginning as a landowner and business woman. As her family in Wiltshire curry favour with King Henry, aided by Thomas Cromwell, Elizabeth makes Kexby Manor her home, finding loyalty among her people there .

First time read for me by this author and I see this is not a debut novel so I'm amazed I've not read her before as the writing is right up my street !
So well written with great interpretation of the characters . I loved that she concentrated on the lesser known Tudors .
Recommended .

So engaged with the characters, I could not stop reading.
Carol is such an excellent writer, her locations are bought to life with her attention to detail, her characters reveal their inner thoughts and her plot races along with never a full moment.
Elizabeth is the younger sister of Jane Seymour, she also has brothers, Edward and Tom. Elizabeth is married at fourteen to kindly Anthony an older Lord and Governor of Jersey, Elizabeth enjoys her life there, she has her first child Harry at fifteen and is soon pregnant again when Anthony has a heart attack and dies, leaving her a young widow. Elizabeth leaves Harry and sets off for one of her Husband's Manor houses Kexby by in Yorkshire. She receives a warm welcome from the staff there. With the help of the Steward William she revives the cloth making industry successfully.
Elizabeth gives birth to a healthy daughter Margery and sends for Harry to join her.. She is visited by handsome Arthur a knight who stays at Kexby for a short time, they are mutually attracted and he warns her to take care as religious unrest is sweeping the country, there can be no marriage between them as he is not her social equal.
Thomas Cromwell is Kings Henry's chief advisor and introduces Elizabeth to his son Gregory, they meet and fall in love and are soon happily married although Elizabeth does not trust Thomas after the part he played in Anne Boleyns downfall
Jane, Elizabeth sister is courted by King Henry after the execution of Anne Boleyn, after they marry she gives both to a healthy son Edward only to die herself shortly after.
Elizabeth's family continue to rise and live in grander homes including Lewes and Arundel, but the country is still divided by religion and suspicion can fall on anyone.
Thank you Carol, NetGalley and Headline for this ARC.

The Queen's Sister follows Elizabeth Seymour, sister to Jane Seymour, Henry VIII's third wife, as she navigates the intrigue, secrets, and shifting loyalties of the Tudor court through her marriage to Gregory Cromwell, son to the kings trusted advisor. Throughout the years she witnesses the political and religious upheaval shaping England during one of its most turbulent periods.Carol McGrath's strong research and rich historical detail bring Tudor England to life, offering an engaging perspective on a lesser-known historical figure. While the pacing is slower and more character-driven than action-packed, it allows the relationships and court politics to develop naturally.I found this book to be well-written and an immersive read for fans of Tudor historical fiction! Thank you to NetGalley, Carol McGrath and Headline Books for giving me the opportunity to read and review this ARC.